Reading Schedule 2016

Now, we used to announce our monthly book themes & book in spotlight a week before the new month begins, but we've realized that it doesn't give our readers enough time to buy/borrow the books and/or set their TBRs for the month, so here we are, with a reading schedule for rest of the year. This will give you plenty of time to arrange for the books and set your TBRs.

Let's dive straight into it, shall we?

June-July: It's Pottermania at Fictional Fortress. We're reading all the seven books, watching 8 movies + hosting 6 giveaways! You cannot ask for anything better, can you?
For reading schedule, go here.
For movie schedule, go here.
To join the readathon, all you have to do is start reading the books and post about them online using the tag #MugglesToWizards. For more info, check our Instagram out.

August Theme: You asked for Historic Fiction, you get Historic Fiction.
Our Pick: Such A Long Journey, Rohinton Mistry.

Buy on Amazon

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September Theme: It's the month of Banned Books! Let's be the rebels we are and read the gems that have been banned.
Our Pick: Satanic Verses, Salman Rushdie.

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October Theme: We'll be reading books along the theme of Mental Health during Oct.
Our Pick: Em and the Big Hoom, Jerry Pinto

Buy on Amazon

Add to Goodreads

November Theme: Graphic Novels month it is!
Our Pick: Munnu by Malik Sajad

Buy on Amazon

Add to Goodreads

December Theme: Holiday Theme Books read along.
Our Pick: Instead of a book, we pick Ruskin Bond. The snow capped mountains and pine trees call!

Buy his books on Amazon

Add his books to Goodreads

To participate in any of these read-a-longs all you need to do is pick a book revolving around the given genres/themes, read & post about them online using #ficfortressreads.
The "Our Picks" are the books we recommend you pick & the ones that we will be reading in the said months :)
           
We hope you join us in reading these themes and books as well as in discussing them at the end of the respective months. Happy Reading!

BOOK OF THE MONTH REVIEW - MRS. DALLOWAY BY VIRGINIA WOOLF

 Genre : Classics, Fiction, Feminism, Women Literature

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Mrs. Dalloway was written by Woolf in 1925, when the world, particularly Europe, was experiencing a lot of changes in all fronts. The story is set in those days of modernism; and revolves around a woman named Clarissa Dalloway, the wife of a rich influential bureaucrat, who loves throwing parties and socializing. The entire story is set in a day of Mrs. Dalloway's life, where each character tells a story about his or her life. Each character directly influencing Mrs. Dalloway, looks back on a day when they were younger, when Clarissa turned down her friend, Peter Walsh's proposal for marriage. Mrs. Dalloway is one of the classics which have been widely read and appreciated around the world.
What I loved the most about Mrs. Dalloway is it's representation of the characters. A typical London morning in 1925 will have all the prominent characters in the novel. Clarissa is a socialite who arranges parties and indulge in socializing with high class families to share gossips and talk about life in London. What is even more special about the timeline is that it is set in 1925 which means the story encapsulates the old fashioned ways of living and the new modernist approach to life. Clarissa Dalloway, is taught from her early childhood how to become the perfect wife in a rich household, and that just represents how women had a certain role in lives. While she is not happy about the ways of life, she has not been able to break out of it. On the other hand, several characters, break out of the perception to become independent and "different" from the women in that time.
The novel has no chapters, just a steady flow of thoughts which jumps from one character to another to form an entire day of activities, impressions and views. Every thought, every view has a specific opinion on life in 1920s, every argument had different approaches and every view had its consequences. Every character has a personality so strong and so different, it's hard to talk about just one character. A character, Septimus Warren Smith is particularly interesting in the story, who is apparently written as a double to Clarissa. While both of them doesn't appreciate the way of life, Septimus breaks out of it by killing himself. And when Clarissa comes to know of it, she describes it as a defiance; she sees it as a way of escaping from the world of mishaps and misfortunes.
Virginia Woolf is a genius, and someone who has read at least one of her works will agree with me when I say this.

-NIVEDITA

BOOK REVIEW: THE LOWLAND BY JHUMPA LAHIRI

Genre: Historical fiction, Contemporary, Indian 

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There are rarely any books which grips your from within and just breaks you into a million prices and yet you smile by the end. The Lowland is that rarity; it is that gem which everyone should read at least once in their lives and live it. It gives you lessons no textbook can give, love equal to what our parents give and life that nothing in this world can give.

The Lowland tells the story Subhash and Udayan, two brothers who are alike from outside but far different from inside. While Subhash believes in his future which is as ordinary as a life can be, whereas Udayan lives for a future which will make every life better in Kolkata. Both of them, when faced with reality chooses their own path. But Udayan, amidst of his wild life, gets killed, Subhash's dream of an ordinary life dies with Udayan.

This is a story which will neither grab everyone's attention, nor maintain it. This book will be easily forgotten, of you do not pay attention to it. But once you read it, out will never leave you. It will affect you and it daily life. As an Indian, I often wonder about my future, and reading this book makes me wonder if it's as bright as it seems. Although set in a time way before my birth, I strongly believe, most of the events might still be relevant in present times. Often, we forget what's more important and what's right and take decisions without thinking about its impact on our future.

The Lowland, in its essence, gives an important emphasis on what the future is like. It's never like what we think about. The ones we love leave us, the ones we live for stop trying. It's a cycle of love and disappointment, and this book proves that to us beautifully.

I don't know if this review in any way justifies the way how I felt about this book. But, pick it up. This won't disappoint you! 

-Niv

March Theme and TBRs

Hello there Readers!

It's a new month, and it's time for us to reveal the theme and book in spotlight,

In case you're new, Fictional Fortress hosts monthly theme based read-a-longs and every month we choose a book in spotlight, usually an Indian author to promote the under-rated gem that Indian Literature is. At the end of the month, we host virtual book discussions for which you can sign up when the announcement is put up on our Instagram.

This March we're going to read books by Woman Writers in the view of Woman's Day on 8th.
Any genre, any number of books, as long as it's written by a woman, we'll allow it ;)

Book-In-Spotlight for March is The Lowland by the celebrated Indian-American author Jhumpa Lahiri. This book was short-listed for a number of awards including Man Booker prize in 2013.
If you've heard of this book and never found the chance to pick it up, now is the time. And if you haven't heard of this author/book, google people, google right now and add this book to your TBR!

BOOK-IN-SPOTLIGHT FOR MARCH
Add to Goodreads

Here's the book trailer if you'd like a peek:

We really hope you join us this month, here are some of our TBRs and current reads for March, if you have any recommendations or if you'd like to share your reads, use the hashtag #ficfortressreads on social medias to stay connected with us (and get featured mayybe)

                                                 

"The ambitious #MarchTBR.
I've planned to read these six books this month. As you can see they are from different genres but written by female authors. This is part of the #ficfortressreads #readathon that they host every month and this month they are reading books by female authors." ~ Pologeebee on Instagram

       

"My tbr for #ficfortressreadsMarch theme which is books written by female authors on account of women's day2016" ~ Nidhi Ajay on Instagram.

"I have never read any book written by Cassandra Clare. So I started reading Clockwork Angel and holy mother of cow this book is amazing 😍 only a few hundred pages left now." ~ Arzoo Naqvi on Instagram.

     

"I usually don't do TBRs, but here's one for the Fictional Fortress March Readalong, books by woman authors. I'll keep adding books as I go about, provided I finish these in time 🙈" ~ Shonazee, Of Ink And Pages on Facebook.

"Despite a busy month, I plan to read more from Women writers but to start off with I'll be reading these three gems. All three authors are celebrated, and it feels great to finally read some of their works." - Nivedita, The Book Loving Nerd

" I'm re reading Cassandra Clare's books as Lady Midnight is releasing soon. I also decided to read the two classics; Jane Austen's The Beautiful Cassandra and Christina Rossetti's Goblin Market. 😀" ~ Varsha on Instagram

What are you reading this March?

December Book In Spot-light: Seahorse By Janice Pariat Book Review

The "Book in Spotlight" for December is the retelling of the Greek myth of the seagod Poseidon and his male devotee Pelops - "Seahorse" by Janice Pariat. A beautiful and under-rated gem, I hope you pick this up and love it as much as I did. This book has been shortlisted for The Hindu Prize For Literature 2015.
And here's how I met this beauty and what I think aboot it,

Title: Seahorse

Author: Janice Pariat

Publisher: Vintage, Random House.

Published On:November 21st, 2014

Page count: 294
Review By: Shonazee

Blurb (via Goodreads):
Nem was not like his college classmates. Instead of crowding around a TV set, Nem opted for lonely walks where he could indulge his passion for photography, until the night he saw Nicholas, a young professor from London, with another male student. The affair is passionate and brief. When Nicholas returns to London, Nem must move on. He graduates and soon finds success as a critic in New Delhi’s burgeoning art world. Then comes an invitation to speak to artists in London, and the past is suddenly resurrected. As London's cosmopolitan art scene envelops Nem, he is haunted by the possibilities of a life with Nicholas. But Nicholas eludes Nem, avoiding a reunion with his old student, but leaving clues that lead to someone else: Myra, a woman Nem thought was Nicholas's sister. Brought together by their love for Nicholas, Nem and Myra embark on a surprising friendship.

Janice Pariat explores the concept of emotional memory with the inquisitive mind of a scientist and the prowess of a poet. Rich, immersive prose drives a story with international scope, one that seeks answers to the age-old mystery of what binds us to others, and how we can ever let them go.

"What if that was all we ever wanted? The things that didn't happen."

The Setting & My Introduction To Seahorse:
This November I met one of my virtual book friends for the very FIRST time. Saying I was nervous about the meet-up would be an understatement cause I'm literally Cath from Fangirl by Rainbow Rowell when it comes to meeting new people buuuut this girl, we hit it off instantly. No awk- hi's or hugs. We bought books to swap, duh, of course, we did.
I gave her three of my precious, Twenty love poems by Pablo Neruda, The Shadow Of The Wind and our prev club pick, The Illicit Happiness Of Other People.
She gave me Water For Elephants, The Year Of Runaways and Seahorse.
Being the kind of confused soul that I am, I spent an entire week, yes, an entire week and I'm not even exaggerating or kidding - to decide which book I should start with.
I was just going through Seahorse, glancing at the first lines and before I know it, I'm on page 10. Like whaaaat even!

"We are shaped by absence. The places that escape our travels, the things we choose not to do, the people we've lost. They are spaces in trellis on which we trail from season to season."

Review:
This book ranks second on my Fav book beginnings (First being, Shantaram by Gregory David Roberts)
And so it began, my love affair with this beautiful book.
This book is the definition of beautiful writing. It's glorious. Yes, glorious.
I literally marked every alternate page for the quotes that I liked. loved.
The author seamlessly shifts between the past and present. New Delhi and UK, leaving us in wonder and awe.
You'll fall in love with Delhi's summers and London's bleak days. That is how good it is.
It is a story about incomplete, open gaping wounds. About the love of your life leaving without a goodbye or explanation. Just vanishes. Leaving you wounded. And forever trapped in past.
All those feels wrapped up in this book.
I did enjoy the story but was too busy admiring the writing to actually connect/relate to the story or characters. Having said that, you should definitely pick this book up. I'm not kidding when I say it has gems embedded in it. So go get your treasure chest in the form of this book.

Bite-sized Review: Beautiful, mesmerizing prose.

Also, click here to check the book trailer out.


"We treasure the incomplete, for it lends us many lives - the one we lead and the million others we could have led. We are creatures of inconsistency. Passionately partial. Unexecuted. Unperformed. Undone. Unaccomplished. And un-concluded."